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Fandral Staghelm
'Fandral Staghelm '(Majordomo Staghelm) was the Archdruid of Darnassus, succeeding Malfurion Stormrage when he was lost in the Emerald Nightmare. He was in a constant power struggle with Tyrande Whisperwind, High Priestess of Elune, for leadership of the night elf people, and was one of the architects of the plan to create Teldrassil. Fandral Staghelm was among the most ancient of the remaining night elves, having been born about years ago after the sundering. Fandral towers most other night elves, standing close to eight feet in height. He used his height to his advantage both in battle and conversation, seeking to intimidate all those around him with his massive stature. Staghelm followed many of the beliefs of the ancient night elves, and one in particular had made him unpopular – Fandral was a staunch night elf supremacist, and he believed that night elves are the only true druids, as well as the superior race on the planet. History Fandral Staghelm was born years ago after the great sundering. Fandral was one of Malfurion Stormrage's top lieutenants, and trained many of the newest generation of the Druids of the Wild. His hot temperament had sometimes clashed with the more restrained Malfurion. Fandral believed that the future of the night elves demanded more expansionism and military planning. His radical beliefs and aggressive demeanor often led him to quarrel with Tyrande, the official head of the night elf government. War of the Shifting Sands The children of C'thun, the Qiraji, had spent years of building an army capable of exacting revenge upon the whole of Kalimdor and the prize was within their grasp. The Titans had long since vacated this world. Only the night elves that once inhabited the area were here to defend. A mighty qiraji known as General Rajaxx would command the initial incursion into Silithus. Only one would stand in his way; the clever night elf archdruid that was known as Fandral Staghelm. They refered to him as "Kar'sis" or Hand of Earth in the native qiraji tongue. Staghelm and his armies were clearly overwhelmed as the endless flow of Rajaxx's troops poured into Silithus. It seemed as if Staghelm, however, was more then just a nuisance to the qiraji. Under Staghelm, the whole night elven armies had came together to defend Kalimdor, greatly slowing the qiraji forces. Unfortunately, the night elven defense was untenable and General Rajaxx knew that they could not hold out much longer. Their tenacity, however, was causing great frustration to Rajaxx and causing even more frustration to his kings. Vek'nilash and Vek'lor, they were known as the Twin Emperors of Ahn'Qiraj, watched the war from the sanctuary of their temple. The clever brothers devised a plan to demoralize and divide Staghelm's forces. Valstann Staghelm had served as the right hand of his father Fandral. A proud and noble warrior, Valstann's dedication and adoration for his father was unyielding --- which the Emperors sensed as a weakness that could be exploited. The qiraji forces were commanded to fall back and hide the bulk of their numbers beneath the sands of the desert. A small attack was ordered upon Southwind Village while the front lines of Staghelm's army were kept occupied. Valstann, eager to please his father, convinced Fandral to allow him to take a small battalion to the defense of Southwind Village. Surely with the tide of battle turning their way, no harm could come to his beloved child. The trap sprung, Valstann was captured by the hiding qiraji and Southwind Village obliterated. General Rajaxx himself took the captive Valstann to the front lines of battle where --- in front of Staghelm and the night elf forces --- he brutally executed the young night elf. The war continued, but the will of the great leader was sapped. The whole of Silithus was soon engulfed by the silithid and their qiraji hosts. It took the help of the dragonflights themselves to finally defeat the silithid defiance. Fandral Staghelm, still in anguish over his son's death, cursed the qiraji and the dragons and threw the Sceptor of the Shifting Sands upon the new barrier, breaking the sceptor into four pieces, now in the hands of other dragonflights. The Absence of Malfurion Stormrage With Malfurion Stormrage missing, Fandral – the leader of those night elves who wished to plant the new World Tree – became the new archdruid. In no time at all, he and his fellow druids had forged ahead and planted the great tree, Teldrassil, off the stormy coasts of northern Kalimdor. Under their care, the tree sprouted up above the clouds. Among the twilight boughs of the colossal tree, the wonderous city of Darnassus took root. However, the tree was not consecrated with nature's blessing and soon fell prey to the corruption of the Burning Legion. The wildlife, and even the limbs of Teldrassil itself were tainted by growing darkness. Regardless, to the date back Fandral had proven to be an effective replacement for the missing Malfurion Stormrage in strictly secular and iconic terms --- none of Malfurion's confidants were exactly pleased. Quintis Jonespyre, the druid that was in Feathermoon Stronghold had raised concerns over the fact that Fandral Staghelm had been procuring vast amounts of the herb marrowgrain in the name of the Cenarion Circle. Fandral himself claimed to have been researching the properties of the grain when in the soil of Un'Goro Crater. Though it is widely known that Staghelm was at odds with the high priestess Tyrande Whisperwind, only the highiest ranking members of the Cenarion Circle and the Sisters of Elune were aware of just how far the disagreements extend --- the two were locked in a bitter power struggle that had secretly polarized the night elf government. The Idol of Remulos Fandral Staghelm met the druid Broll Bearmantle and his human companion Lo'Gosh. Broll had returned to Darnassus after leaving for sometime to report the cleansing of the Idol of Remulos. Staghelm had suggested that since Broll planned further quests with his friends, the Idol would remain with him and be safer with the archdruid inside Teldrassil. Bearmantle agreed, though Lo'Gosh expressed doubts about Fandral's trustworthiness. The Return of Malfurion Stormrage At some point after the months following the Lich King, Arthas Menethil's defeat, Fandral Staghelm gathered with many druids to Teldrassil to unfold a master plan to heal the giant tree. Naralex, Broll and Hamuul Runetotem were among those he called. He intended to use the Idol of Remulos to achieve this, against Bearmantle's better judgement. Before the ritual could be completed, however, Tyrande arrived, having been warned by Elune that Malfurion's life was in greater danger then before. It was eventually revealed that Fandral Staghelm had been the pawn of the Emerald Nightmare's lord, Xavius, who sent a hallucination of Valstann to lead the archdruid astray. Staghelm had secretly been prolonging Malfurion's absence using the herb marrowgrain the entire time. Worse yet, he was also responsible for the corruption and near-failure of Teldrassil, by secretly grafting a branch of Xavius's own Nightmare Tree onto the new World Tree in its infancy. When Malfurion Stormrage finally broke free of the Emerald Nightmare, he revealed Fandral's madness and betrayal to the rest of the druids. After the Nightmare's defeat, the druids brought Staghelm to Moonglade in the hope that he would recover, though many suspected that his mind was permanently broken from losing his child Valstann Staghelm a second time. These suspsicions were proven correctly sooner then anyone expected. The dragon Alysra, who suggested bringing Fandral Staghelm to Moonglade, had defected to the Cult of the Twilight's Hammer and brought him to them instead. There, he and Leyara swore loyalty to Ragnaros, founding the Druids of the Flame. Their betrayal was made known when they attacked the Nordrassil summit, using Thrall's emotions against him and splitting him across the elemental planes. Category:Characters Category:Night Elf Category:Druids Category:Deceased Category:Cult of the Twilight's Hammer Category:Druids of the Flame